Redline
by greenglowchassis
Summary: From the beginning, Letty has loved Dom and he pushes her away. In the end he realizes what he's been missing out on. The story of Dom/Letty from the beginning
1. Default Chapter

OK. I don't own any of the characters in The Fast and The Furious. This story starts way back when they were kids and progresses from that point. Reviews are always appreciated, bad or good.  
  
~Letty's POV~  
  
"Letty! Go away!" Dom shouts at me for the third time that morning, but I'm not going anywhere.  
  
I stand defiantly, frowning, with my arms crossed and my foot tapping, as I wait for him or Vince to roll out from under the Taurus they're working on and tell me again. After waiting a few minutes, I sigh and speak. "Just let me help. I won't get in the way."  
  
"You already are in the way, and no!" Dom slides out on the dolly and glares at me. "You're ten years old. What are you going to be able to help us with?" Vince laughs from beneath the vehicle.  
  
"I can do just as much as you can! And if you won't let me, I can at least hand you wrenches!" I yell, desperately trying to be included. Dom laughs. Why am I always pushed away? "Oh please, Dominic. You know I know as much as you. You think because you're fourteen that you're so much wiser. Get a life!"  
  
"I could say the same to you." Dom replies. My eyes flash as I walk up to him and give him a swift hard kick in the leg. He yelps and drops his wrench with a clatter. "Jesus, Letty! What'd you do that for?"  
  
I stomp down the Toretto driveway, my fists balled at my sides. I'm so infuriated that I almost run into Mr. Toretto, Tony, who's coming out of his house. "Whoa there, little lady. Where you headed?"  
  
"Home." I look at my feet.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"No reason," I mutter.  
  
"They won't let you help?" He asks kindly, a hand on my shoulder. I shake my head. "Well, how 'bout if you help me?" He says it loudly enough for the guys to hear and I smile and nod.  
  
"What's she gonna help with?" Dom yells. My face falls.  
  
Tony ignores him and takes my hand, leading me to the shed at the back. "How 'bout we work on my car a little bit. You can show me all that knowledge you've got up in that head of yours." He ruffles my hair.  
  
"You mean your charger?" I look at him, wide-eyed with excitement.  
  
"Yes I do."  
  
"But dad!" Dominic whines. You said you weren't working on that today. Let me help."  
  
"I think you've helped enough things today. It's Letty's turn." I stand and childishly stick my tongue out at them and make a face.  
  
"Aw, man!" Dom grumbles.  
  
"Dude, chill. It's one day. What's so wrong with that? Vince asks him.  
  
"She's gonna screw it all up."  
  
"Dominic!" Tony shouts back at him. "You're fourteen. Stop acting like a five year old. You've had plenty of chances to work on this car, and will have plenty more. I don't know why you're so jealous."  
  
With that remark, Dom rolls out from under the car, his face red with embarrassment. "I'm NOT jealous." He quickly hides himself from view under the chassis.  
  
I turn back to the makings of a car in the shed. Tony hands me a wrench and we get to work. "Don't worry about them. They're just trying to be macho. One of these days, they'll realize you know just as much about cars as them, and then they'll put your talents to good use." Tony always makes me smile. I just wish Dominic would look at me.....any way besides a pest. Doesn't he know I'd do anything for him? I sigh audibly and Tony smiles up at me.  
  
"One day, Chiquita. One day."  
  
I blush furiously, hoping he doesn't know the real reason I'm sighing. A few hours later, I'm covered in grease from head to toe and standing in front of the fridge in the Toretto's kitchen. I grab a bottle of water and start chugging it as Dom enters and steps in front of me. He grabs the orange juice carton and starts to drink directly from it. I smile, thinking how he'll get in trouble if Tony finds him. A stomping of boots in the front hall startles Dom, and the carton slips, pouring juice down his chin. A laugh escapes my lips and he glares at me, making my face fall once again. I slip past him into the front hall, heading for the door. "I've got to go now, Mr. Toretto. Thanks for lettin' me help an' all."  
  
"Come back any time Letty." He smiles.  
  
Dom groans at this and I slip out the front door.  
  
~Dom's POV~  
  
"Why you gotta let her come over here all the time, Dad? She's such a pain."  
  
"Dominic, I don't know why you let Letty turn you into such a baby. That girl worships you and you can't say a kind word to her, ever. Her home life isn't all sunshine and roses, you know, so it's better when she comes here."  
  
"Dad, she just gets in the way. Why's she into cars anyway? Shouldn't she be playing with Mia and I don't know, playing dress-up or whatever girls do?"  
  
"That's not your decision what she likes. If she likes cars, I don't see the harm in letting her help out. Besides, Dominic, if you took a minute to listen to her, or watch her work, you'd see she knows almost as much if not as much as you and Vince. She could be a useful tool for you guys." I groan at this and roll my eyes. He sighs and throws up his hands, shrugging. "Ok, don't take my advice, but you're making a mistake."  
~Ok, there's the first chapter. I know it's kinda short but I just wanted to start it off before I had to go do some schoolwork. Tell me what you think." 


	2. Always Alone

~Alright, here's the next part in Redline. Thanks so much to all the reviews I got for that little nothing chapter!~  
  
~Letty's POV~  
  
I scuff my shoes walking down the sidewalk. I only live across the street a few houses down, but I don't want to spend the whole night alone in my house so I take my time.  
  
"Hey Letty! Wait up a second." Mia calls from the steps in front of her house. She jogs across the silent avenue and meets up with me on the other side. "Just thought I'd walk ya home. I don't really want to hang out with dad and Dom tonight." She smiles and I give a half-smile back.  
  
"Sure thing. Not much to do over at my house, but you can stay for a while." We walk side by side, passing the occasional lawn ornament and laughing at its hideousness. Arriving at my house, I take the few stairs two at a time and reach under the doormat for the key. It glides into the lock and the door swings open with a small creak. The house is only illuminated by the fading sunlight outside. I flick on the kitchen light and see the red light blinking on the answering machine. *Gotta be from mom* I think. I casually press play as Mia takes a few steps into the kitchen. The message is in a mixture of Spanish and English and I half- listen as I root around in the cupboard for something to eat.  
  
"Hola, niña. Lo siento, but I have to work late again. I'll probably be home around 11. No olvida comer algo. I'll come up and say goodnight when I get home, ok? Te amo. Hasta luego."  
  
I sigh at the message. She's always gone, but I'm used to it. Mia looks at me in surprise, with her big doe eyes. "She's not coming home till 11?"  
  
"Nope. She doesn't usually though. Hungry?" I ask.  
  
"A little, but dad will be mad if I eat here and then don't eat dinner."  
  
"Ok. Nothing, though? Little salsa and tortilla chips?" I tempt her.  
  
She smiles. "Sure! Just not too many."  
  
I laugh at how easily I persuade her. I grab the chips and put them on the counter. Then I swing the fridge open and grab the salsa and two Jarritos sodas, kicking the door shut after me. "Salsa and carbonation. You are going to die!" I smile devilishly, and she laughs.  
  
"I can handle it."  
  
We begin to eat, and I flip on the TV, watching some random basketball game. Surprisingly, Mia eats the salsa like it's not spicy at all. Iron stomach. I like that. A little while into our snack, the phone rings. I grab the cordless off the counter.  
  
"Bueno?" I say, expecting it to be my mother. "Letty?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"This is Tony Toretto. Is Mia there?"  
  
"Yeah, hold on Mr. T." I grin at my own joke. "Mi, it's your dad."  
  
She picks up the phone without taking her eyes from the TV. "Hey dad."  
  
"Hey Mia. Dinner's ready. You ready to come home?"  
  
"Yeah. Can Letty come too? She's all alone here and her mom won't be home till elev-" I cut her off with a vigorous shaking of my head. Too late. I can here him agree on the other end. She hangs up the phone. "What's wrong?"  
  
"I'm fine by myself."  
  
"Come on, Let. You know you don't want to be alone. Besides, it's just dinner."  
  
"I'm not a charity case. Don't invite me to dinner 'cause you feel sorry for me." I frown.  
  
"Letty!" She cries, exasperated. "You're my best friend. Why would my inviting you to dinner, make you a charity case?"  
  
I give a small smile and then nod my head. "Ok. I'll come." Actually, I love being at the Toretto's. Something's always going on there, and somebody's always home. It's just the atmosphere of a real family that I like. I switch off the TV and we head back towards the twinkling porch lights of the Toretto's.  
  
Mia leads me around the back of her house, directly into the kitchen, where I can smell tomato sauce. Her dad is cooking, a Corona on the counter next to him. He's stirring the pasta in a big pan and jokingly puts the colander on Dom's head. Dom laughs and puts it back into the sink and then steals a swing of his dad's beer. Tony fakes a glare, but then lapses his stern stance and smiles, showing he doesn't care. "Hey little one. Hey Letty. You guys hungry?" We nod. Tony's pasta is the best. "Well, it'll be ready in a little while. Can you guys set the table?"  
  
Mia reaches into a drawer for napkins and placemats as I grab a handful of silverware. Dom sets glasses at three places and fills them with a few ice cubes and then iced tea. We each sit down by a place setting and Dom starts to thumb wrestle Mia. She laughs and shrieks as he lets her win. Sometimes I wish I were just another one of the Toretto kids, having dinner with my family. I've known them all my life, but sometimes, I still feel like I'm on the outside looking in.  
  
In a few minutes, a huge bowl of pasta and sauce is placed on the table and we bow our heads. "Letty, how about if you say grace tonight?" Tony asks, smiling at me.  
  
I nod and do my best. "Uh, Dear lord, thank you for the food before us. We pray that you keep Tony safe in races and that the Toretto's don't get tired of me coming over. Amen." Everyone chuckles and we dig in. I attack the pasta ravenously, only now realizing how hungry I am. Everyone is silent for a few minutes as we eat and then Tony clears his throat.  
  
"I was thinking about going out to Palmdale next weekend. Anyone up for it?" I grin, until I think about it and realize he's only talking to Dom and Mia. They both nod their heads excitedly, as I keep my eyes downcast. "Letty?" He asks. A ray of hope shoots through me and I meet his gaze. "How about you? Do you want to come too?" I can't hide my smile any longer and I yelp.  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
He laughs. "It's settled then. We'll make a day of it. The four of us, plus if Vince wants to come, he can too. Now, anyone up for seconds?" We all hold out our plates.  
  
A few hours later, everyone is seated in the living room, on the couches or the floor, watching a movie. Mia has dozed off on Tony's lap in a chair and I'm fighting to keep my eyes open sprawled out on the couch. Dom's sitting, his back against the couch still intently awake.  
  
"Dominic?" I faintly hear Tony say.  
  
"Huh?" he asks, not taking his eyes from the TV.  
  
"I think it's time we all got to bed. You guys have school in the morning. I'm going to take Mia upstairs. Do you think you could take Letty home? Her mom should be there by now."  
  
He grumbles quietly, but nods his head. "Yeah dad." His voice has a definite scratch to it, but not quite the gravelly tone he'll take on in later years. Gently he picks me up off the sofa and starts towards the door.  
  
"I can walk. You don't have to carry me." I mumble groggily. He ignores my statement and continues down the street, my head leaned against his chest. He reaches my porch quickly with his long stride and gently sets me down.  
  
"Where's the key?"  
  
"Under the.the..thingie." I point at the doormat in my stupor.  
~Dom's POV~  
  
I laugh and unlock the door. The door swings in on its hinges and I see all the lights are off. "Your mom isn't home yet."  
  
"That's ok. She'll be home at 11."  
  
"I can't leave you here by yourself till 11, Let. You're only 10."  
  
"I do it every other night." she tells me. That's really sad.  
  
"You do?" I ask shocked.  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Well not tonight. I'm gonna sit here until your mom gets home. You go on up to bed."  
  
"No, I'll wait with you." She mumbles again  
  
"Alright." I concede, closing the door. A few minutes pass and only the sound of crickets is heard. "Letty?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Where does your mom work?"  
  
"She waitresses over at the diner on 2nd street. She only works till 9, usually, but then goes out for coffee or whatever with her friends."  
  
"Oh," is all I can say. "Where's your dad now?" I know he's in the military.  
  
"I think he's stationed around DC, in Virginia or Maryland somewhere. I can never remember."  
  
"When was the last time you saw him?"  
  
"May, last year." She replies. "He came out while on leave. I wish he could come out more often."  
  
"I'm sure he wants to. Your parents divorced?"  
  
"Yeah. When I was really little. He told me he'd always be there. He has, best he can, I guess." I can see a small smile in the moonlight.  
  
"It must suck that you don't get to see him."  
  
"Yeah, but at least he's there. I mean, you must really hate the fact that your mom's gone-really gone." Damn her childlike honesty! I know she didn't mean anything by it, but being reminded that my mom's dead isn't a great feeling. "Oh Jesus, Dom. I'm sorry. I didn't mean-" I cut her off with a shake of my head.  
  
"S'okay. I know you didn't. Cancer's a bitch, right?" I laugh almost bitterly. "Look, it's late. You should sleep a little." "Yeah." She shivers and I see she's only got a little tank top and shorts on.  
  
"Commere." I grunt and she crawls towards me. I put my arm around her, trying to keep her warm. She sighs and closes her eyes, leaning her head against me. I must have drifted off because before I know it, I'm being shaken awake by Letty's disgruntled mother.  
  
"Dominic?" She asks confused. "What are you doing here?"  
  
I sit up, trying to remember that for myself. Then it comes back to me. "Letty had dinner at our house and when I brought her home, I didn't want her to be alone."  
  
"That's sweet of you Dominic, but Letty's fine. You better get on home before your dad gets worried about you."  
  
"Thanks, Mrs. Rodriguez." I jog home and find my dad sitting on the couch, the blue glow of the television playing shapes across his face. "Hey dad."  
  
"Where were you?" He asks.  
  
"Sitting on Letty's porch with her. Her mom wasn't home and I didn't think it was right for me to leave her all alone."  
  
"Good, Dom. That was the right thing to do. Now you should probably crash before you have to go to school yourself." He smiles at me, letting me know he's not angry, and I slip up the stairs. Quickly, though, I dart back down.  
  
"Dad?"  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"It's not right."  
  
"What isn't?"  
  
"Letty, being left alone all the time."  
  
"Yeah, I know." He sighs. "But we can't do anything about it, except keep inviting her over, or hoping she comes by herself."  
  
"Yeah.....Well, goodnight."  
  
"Night."  
~Alright, there ya go. Reviews are always nice! In a chapter or two, I'll jump it up a bit so it's not ten year old Letty forever!~ 


	3. Race and Jealousy

~Here we go Again. Thanks for all the people reviewing. You guys are awesome! The story hasn't even gotten anywhere yet!!~  
  
~Letty's POV~  
  
Light streams in from the thinly curtained windows in my room. I try to block it out by putting a pillow over my head, but that doesn't keep me in slumber for long. The next thing to interrupt me is my mother yelling for me to get up.  
  
"Niña! Te despiertas! La escuela empieza a las ocho y ahora son las siete y media!"  
  
I jump out of bed at this. They get so mad if we're late for school. Hurriedly rooting through my closet for some shorts and a t-shirt, I throw my hair into a ponytail and grab my shoes and an eggo on the way out the door.  
  
"Hasta luego, mama!" I call.  
  
"Te amo, niña!" she answers.  
  
I book it down the sidewalk, my backpack dragging me down. I'm out of breath by the time I get to school, but I make it into class just before the bell rings. Mia gives me a strange look and I try to mime oversleeping. She laughs and the teacher, Mrs. Anderson, glares at her. Mia quickly makes her face stony to match the rest of the class as she starts to speak. I don't really listen to what's going on, getting my cues from other students dragging out books. The morning passes quickly and lunch comes without getting caught spacing out. I never really eat lunch at school, because the cafeteria is so gross and I always go swinging instead. I've always done it. Whenever I went to a playground as a little little kid I would spend the whole time on the swings and fight other kids for them. There's nothing like the feeling of swinging. You can just let everything wrong in your life go as you soar. Nothing seems as bad when you're swinging.  
  
Today the playground is deserted and the whole set of swings is abandoned. I sit on the closest one and just start to pump my legs, quickly gaining height. Letting everything that ever complicated my life go, I just think of the races this weekend. The track is always fun. That's when I feel like I belong the most. Tony alway acts like I'm someone special, like it matters if I'm there. That's nice, because my mom's never around. Now I know she loves me. She really does. But, she'd rather spend time with her friends than me. I guess I can understand that. She's still pretty young.  
  
Mia comes outside and sits on the swing next to me. She keeps her swing fairly low, just rocking back and forth in a small inverted arc, her long hair blowing in her face. I slow down my swing to match her motion. She looks over and smiles.  
  
"Why do you always come out here?" she asks.  
  
"I dunno. It's fun." I answer truthfully.  
  
"Yeah, but you come everyday. What's so amazing?"  
  
"I....I don' know. It's my place to be alone, to chill out, daydream I guess."  
  
"Oh. So are you coming to the races with us?"  
  
"Yeah! You know I wouldn't miss it. I haven't asked ma yet, but she'll be fine with it. She most likely won't be around Saturday anyway, so it doesn't matter where I am."  
  
"Cool. 'Cause it would suck if you didn't go. I mean, the races are fun, but hanging with Dom and Vince all day? Can't wait!" she laughs. I do to. The mental picture of Mia having to chill with those two lugs all day doesn't seem to fun.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
~Dom's POV~  
  
"Yo Vince!" I yell down the hall as I enter the school.  
  
"Hey, Dom. What's up?" He turns around and raises a hand in response in the hall.  
  
"Not much, man! It's too crowded here. I'll talk to you in shop!" I try to make myself heard over the din of all the kids. I go to my locker and get my books for the first couple of periods, knowing I won't actually open them. By the time shop rolls around, I've shoved my bag in a corner and haven't touched it. Today, all we're learning about is how to replace a fan belt. Vince and did that when we were ten years old, so we just stand around talking.  
  
"So we're goin' to the track this weekend. Dad's racing."  
  
"Cool man."  
  
"He said you could come, if you want."  
  
"Aww, man I wish I could. My dad's decided to go up to Carmel to try and win my mom back. He thinks if I'm with him, she'll consider it more. I tried to tell him she's got a boyfriend, but he just won't listen."  
  
"That sucks. Now I'm gonna have to hang out with Mia and Letty all day."  
  
"Yeah that does suck dude."  
  
We grumble about our upcoming weekends for the rest of class. The bell doesn't ring soon enough, and then it's lunch. I go to my locker to grab a notebook before I head to the cafeteria.  
  
"Hey Dom."  
  
"Oh hey, Gabby." I answer the short pretty girl standing next to me. She's obviously liked me for a while. I don't remember why I haven't done anything about it.  
  
"How's it going?" she stares up at me with honey eyes.  
  
"Pretty good. How about you?"  
  
"Oh not too bad. So what are you doing this weekend?"  
  
"Just going to the races with my dad and sister and her friend. Vince was supposed to come, but he can't." I see an opportunity to hang with her this weekend. "You wouldn't be interested in going, would you?"  
  
She had frowned when I mentioned the races, but now she was all smiles at the opportunity I presented. "Sure! I'd love to."  
  
"Great, ok. So I'll call you about it tonight?"  
  
"Yeah. Here, let me give you my number." She takes a pen from her bag and scrawls her number across the back of my hand in big bubbly numbers. "Can't wait." She calls over her shoulder as she bounces off to lunch.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
~Letty's POV~  
  
The races came soon. Ma had said I could go and I hadn't been to a race in a couple months so I was really excited. Tony said we could help in the pit and everything. Vince wasn't anywhere to be found, but Dom didn't seem worried. I wondered why, but would find out soon enough. We arrived at the track at about 9:00. Tony's race was at 12:00, so we had plenty of time to tune his car and walk around for a good while. At about 11:30, Dom wandered away from us and Mia and I went back to Tony who was putting the final adjustments on his car.  
  
"Hey girls," he greeted us cheerfully.  
  
"Hey dad." Mia chirped. "You ready?"  
  
"Yes I am. Ready and raring to go!" he laughs lightly. "Where's Dominic?"  
  
"I don't know. He disappeared about 15 minutes ago. Should we go find him?"  
  
"Yeah, could you girls? Thanks."  
  
We leave Tony and quickly scan the crowds looking for Dom. Soon Mia spots him. "He's over there. Wait. Who's that girl he's with?"  
  
I look to where she's pointing and see a pretty girl about Dom's age holding his hand. I frown jealously. "I don't know. I didn't know he had a girlfriend right now."  
  
"I never know which girl it is with Dom. It's better to just not keep track." She laughs.  
  
I laugh as well, but it comes out very forced. We make our way over to the two, as she giggles and playfully slaps his shoulder at something he says. I roll my eyes in disgust.  
  
"Hey Dom. Tony wants you to go sit down cuz the race is about to start." I spit at him.  
  
"Ok. Oh, this is Gabby."  
  
"Hi." She smiles and giggles. "So you're Mia, and you're....." She trails off.  
  
"Letty." Mia finishes.  
  
"Nice to meet you guys."  
  
"Come on Gabby, let's go sit down." He slings his arm over her shoulder and gives her a kiss on the cheek. Oh, if looks could kill..........We all go and sit down to watch the race.  
  
Mia sits on the end and I'm right next to Gabby, who's leaning on Dom's shoulder. Gag me! I'm sure she's perfectly nice, but boy do I hate that girl right now. The race begins and I try to block out the two sitting to my right. Tony's race goes by way too fast. He wins by a good margin and we run down to the pits with our special passes to congratulate him.  
  
"Way to go Dad!" Dom yells.  
  
"Awesome, Mr. T." I tell him.  
  
He picks Mia up in one arm and me in the other and twirls us around. "My girls." he says. I love when he does that. It makes up for my dad being thousands of miles away. I only get the occasional letter, but they're all preserved in a shoebox in my room. I have every one of his letters. The day ends with a trip for ice cream and he then drops me off in the ever advancing twilight.  
  
"Thanks for letting me tag along." I say gratefully.  
  
"Anytime, Letty. You're a little Toretto, by everything but blood." I beam at him and then run inside. It had been a great day, despite that Gabby girl.  
~Ok reviews are appreciated. There'll probably be one more chapter of them as pretty young and then they'll start to get older so things will get a little more interesting!~ 


End file.
